Wellness Activities / Events

Don't Gain A Pound Holiday Challenge!

Week 2: Thursday is weigh-in day for those participating in the Holiday Weight Challenge. Don't forget to record your weight!
Here are some rationalizations that might come up in your holiday self-talk:

I'm stressed.

I'm too busy.

It's the holidays. Why not?

This is the only time of year I get to eat these foods.

Perhaps the challenge is really to participate in this season as reasonably as we can while still making daily healthy choices for ourselves. This isn't the only time of the year we'll see THAT cookie. Exercise isn't just something to fit in IF we have time. Weight maintenance is part of the larger issue to choose, on a daily basis, healthy choices every day. Your health is for the long run. The Mayo Clinic offers us some suggestions from those who have successfully lost weight and kept if off:

Monitor your weight regularly. People who weigh themselves at least once a week are more successful in keeping off the pounds. Monitoring your weight can tell you whether your efforts are working and can help you detect small weight gains before they become larger. (New self-talk: I'm on track!)

Be consistent. Sticking to your healthy-weight plan during the week, on the weekends, and amidst vacation and holidays increases your chances of long-term success. (New self-talk: I'm worth it!)

For more tips, visit the following site on Weight maintenance, to help keep the weight off permanently.

This week, we are challenging you to record what you eat! According to recent research, we are presented with, on average, over 200 food decisions every day. If we eat without thinking, because we're tired or busy or stressed, many of our food decisions may be poor ones, influenced more by cues that entice us than our own wish to be healthy. For many of us, this is holiday crunch week. In spite of your busyness, strive to pay good attention to what you eat. And don't forget to weigh and record your weight!

Picking healthier snacks sometimes is all about convenience. Here is a list of easy snack ideas.

Many of us come face to face with our very favorite, traditional foods this time of year. And Living Well, Working Well is after you to not gain a pound. "Impossible!" you say. "Possible?" we say. Can we have our pie and eat it too? We called in our team for suggestions. This week our team was members of the MDH Vegetarian Healthy Lunch Club. One member said: Try the Cooking Light Web site. Another suggested we Google the words healthy pecan pie. We Googled healthy pecan pie and were directed to a Cooking Light recipe. (How's that for teamwork?!) The Cooking Light recipe shaves off 100 calories per slice. (You'd still best not eat the whole pie.) Google healthy+ your favorite family recipe and see what you find. Here are some other expert suggestions for holiday eating:

· Make conversations a priority.

· Rather than nibbling on appetizers, make yourself a small plate of food. Sit and enjoy it.

Living Well, Working Well Survey Results

Results

74% of the respondents are interested in a wellness program at BSU and NTC

72% of the respondents are thinking of changing health behaviors

87% indicate stress negatively impacts their health

94% indicate they do not get enough physical activity

80% indicate they need to lose weight

The main topics of interest are:

Exercise/Fitness

Nutrition/Weight loss

Relaxation

Social Activities

Financial strategies

Respondents had the following ideas/recommendations:

Have challenges like "Biggest Loser"

Organize partners/buddies to exercise

Organize walking teams

Some people suggested that membership for the Rec. Center should be free. Unfortunately this is not possible, because the Rec. Center is funded by student fees.

Plans

The results of this survey will be used to set priorities for fulfilling the Living Well, Working Well (LWWW) mission, which is "a workplace that encourages, empowers, and supports employees as they strive to live well and work well".

Thanks for your interest. We look forward to working with you during the year. If you are interested in helping with the programming, please contact us.